The Logic of Scientific Discovery

Many of Karl Popper’s philosophies can be better understood within the historical context of the first half of the 20th century, including the reactionary nature of his ideas to the political climate of World War II. When Popper wrote the draft that would later become The Logic of Scientific Discovery, he was eager to complete and publish a book that would provide his family with the opportunity to leave Austria before Nazism secured its hold. The successful publication of an academic work would make him a more viable candidate for universities in other countries. Popper was born into a Jewish family, and he recognized the ever-increasing prominence of the German Reich in Europe. Austria’s political leaders were acquiescing to many of Hitler’s demands, and Popper knew that his home country was in trouble. He finished the book just a few years before Germany annexed Austria.

Meanwhile, the early- to mid-20th century experienced a scientific boom. Popper lived in a time of automatic transmissions, televisions, and the atomic bomb. It was also the time of racist propaganda presented as a false branch of scientific study called eugenics. Positivistic methods and damaging ideologies meant that evidence could be manipulated and interpreted to justify almost anything.